Golden Sand
by silverfire113
Summary: Sakura is caught in a sandstorm and unexpectedly saved by Kankuro. The leaf village is under attack and Gaara is missing! Can the two ninjas manage to work together or will they be each others undoing?
1. Sandstorm

Sakura felt the golden grains of sand whip across her face without mercy. She forced herself to put each foot in front of the other as she pushed against the strong winds and kept her eyes narrowed to slits. The wind seemed to cut through her clothes, making marks on her pale skin. Finally the young kunochi collapsed. Her body could no longer carry her through the strong winds.

"I…need to get there…" she murmured as her vision dimmed. A blotch suddenly appeared in her line of sight and she reached out to it. What else to do could she do?

* * *

Sakura opened her eyes slowly. The pink haired ninja sat up, mumbling under her breath when pain shot up her back from sleeping on the hard ground for too long. She glanced around at the environment, almost expecting to feel the harsh wind pulling against her. Brown, jagged walls surrounded her; a cave. She looked around more carefully…and froze. A figure was sitting against one wall. Silently she reached around and grabbed a kunai out of her back pouch, squeezing it tightly. With slow footsteps she made her way over to the sleeping form. It stirred. Suddenly it sprang up, grabbing Sakura by the neck and knocking the kunai out of her hand. She struggled but couldn't get free. Somehow she ended up facing the other way with her arms twisted around behind her back.

"Who are you!? What do you want?!" Sakura demanded as she continued her efforts to escape.

"You're not very nice to the one that saved your life," a masculine voice replied smugly.

Sakura froze. "What?"

"I found you out in that sand storm. Don't you know better then to wander around the desert without proper knowledge of its dangers?"

"Why did you help me?" she asked, trying to turn and see him.

"I was returning a favor."

"…?"

The man suddenly spun her around to face him. The kunochi's eyes widened in surprise. "Kankuro?"

"Yeah," he grinned, but it quickly faded. "Sakura…what were you doing out there? You could have been killed."

Sakura thought he sounded a bit concerned. Must have been her imagination.

"I came because…because…" she mumbled.

"Well spit it out already! I already wasted enough time caring for you!"

"Our village…needs help…"

"…What?"

"We were attacked by another village."

"…" Kankuro looked away for a moment as if contemplating something.

"Listen, I have to speak with your brother," she finally said, determination in her voice.

"Gaara is…how to put this…"

"Gaara is what?"

"Gone," the sand ninja finally admitted, his shoulders slumping.

"Gone?" Sakura asked, shocked.

"I came out here to find him…but found you instead. He went missing several days ago," he stated quietly.

"What…is going on…?"

"I don't know…but…are you feeling alright? When I found you…you were badly dehydrated. You need to drink some water," Kankuro said, forcing a water canteen into her hands. She fumbled with it for a moment but didn't drink any.

"What about you?" she asked hesitantly.

"What about me?" the puppeteer sounded exasperated.

"You need water too."

Kankuro turned to her with a smirk.

"I'll last longer then you. After all, I am a shinobi of Sunagakure."

"Alright…"

Sakura took a small sip of the water and then sat down on the cool cave floor. The sand ninja took a seat next to her, sighing when he was finally on the ground. Sakura hadn't noticed it earlier, but his face paint has smeared considerably.

"Were you in a fight?" she asked absently, recapping the canteen.

"If that's what you want to call it," he said nonchalantly.

"Your paint is smeared."

Kankuro looked down at his hands. "I didn't notice."

"Why do you wear it in the first place?" Sakura queried. It was a question she'd been wondering for a long time now but had never had the guts to ask.

"Cause."

"Cause why?"

"Cause I don't want to look like someone."

"…Who?"

"…My father," he finally answered, though it came out hollow sounding.

Sakura mouthed a silent 'Oh.' She had heard about the previous Kazekage…about how cruel he was. Quietly she examined his face once more. He looked…tired.

"How long have you been looking for Gaara?"

Kankuro thought for a moment. "About one week I guess."


	2. I and U

**Chapter Two**

"One…week?! But…without a Kazekage…" Sakura trailed off, knowing how hectic it could get without a village leader.

"Baki has taken over for the time being. He told me to go find Gaara, but…no luck yet," he puppeteer stated. "I hate this kind of crap…" he stated under his breath.

"You should rest a little. If you don't have enough energy later on you won't be of any use," Sakura pointed out slyly.

"Yeah, I know," he sighed.

"Well then, go sleep somewhere before I knock you out myself."

Kankuro got back up (somewhat faster then he usually would have) and left for the back of the cave, yawning subconsciously as he did so. Sakura watched him sit back against the wall. Then the cave went silent. Sakura sighed, finally concluding after a few minutes that the sand shinobi had fallen asleep. She stole over to him and looked him over. Battles meant injuries. Being a medical ninja, she had noticed the way he kept on touching his arm when they were talking. She quickly knelt down next to him and began examining it, wondering why men had to be so stupid.

Couldn't he just come out and say he was injured? Sheesh!

"Ow!" Kankuro yelled, jumping awake.

"Watch it!" Sakura growled, knocked backwards by his sudden explosion.

"What the heck are you doing?!" he hissed

"You're wounded! I was just wondering why you didn't say anything!" the leaf ninja scolded.

"It's not a big deal!"

"_Yes_, it _is_!"

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Not!"

"Listen to me! You're not the medical ninja here! Your wounds might be infected or poisoned so I have to check!"

"It's not infected or poisoned!"

"How would you know?!"

"…Because!"

"Sit down and quite complaining before I knock you across the head! _Trust me_, it will hurt!"

"Whatever…" Kankuro grumbled, giving in to her threats.

Sakura sighed when he finally calmed down again. Slowly she cut the fabric of his sleeve on his left arm and examined the deep cut. It didn't look infected…but still, it couldn't hurt to check. Inner Sakura was grinning evilly right now, she just knew it. She poked it with one finger, causing Kankuro to wince. She poked him again, only this time he actually growled at her, his eyes narrowing.

"I might as well put something on it...Sit still while I get my stuff," Sakura commanded as she got up, headed for her backpack which had been knocked across the cave floor when she fell backwards earlier.

Kankuro bit his lip. It was a known fact that he sucked at anything medical. Maybe it was a good thing he'd found Sakura. The wound probably would have gotten infected if she wasn't here. It happened on almost every fighting mission. Frowning, the puppeteer watched as Sakura walked back holding a small bottle in her hand. She took some lotion stuff out using her finger and then proceeded to rub it on Kankuro's wound. He hissed again at the stinging. Sakura felt a hint of amusement, even though she tried to hide it.


	3. Hot

**Chapter Three**

Kankuro stood up after Sakura was _finally _done. He glanced at his ripped shirt sleeve, frowning in disapproval. The pink haired kunochi had bandaged his arm neatly and was now sitting opposite him on the other side of the cave. Kankuro just played with the straps that fastened his puppets to his back. Temari said that he did it a lot when he was bored or nervous. So what was he? Bored…Or nervous? Why the heck would he be nervous? The sand ninja quickly pushed the thought away.

Sakura sat with her knees up to her checks. For some reason those very checks that her knees were against seemed to burn up when she was near the annoying puppeteer. She couldn't have a crush on him. It was impossible…right? Of course, at first, she had hated him. After she had gotten to know him better though she found how…caring he was under the mask. He wasn't really _that_ bad…

"Hey, Kankuro!" Sakura called over at him.

"What?" he grumbled back.

"When are you planning on heading out?"

"…why?"

"I was wondering if…I could go with you."

"What about your village?" he asked.

"We need all the help we can get, and Gaara is a powerful ally. You could find him faster if we looked together."

"I guess…"

"…Please?" she pleaded, using her best puppy-dog eyes.

"Fine, fine! Just stop that!" he said, annoyed that her technique had worked. "You better not be a burden."

"Who, me? If I remember correctly, _I_ wasn't the one who Sasori mopped the floor with."

"Don't. Push it," Kankuro growled.

By the time their conversation was over the sandstorm had slowed to a stop. No sand grains ready to fly into people's eyes. No piercing wind. Kankuro stood up, walking towards the entrance of the cave. He simply nodded at Sakura, signaling for her to follow. Both shinobi stepped out into the sun. It was a bright and clear day without wind to blow away the immense heat. Sakura groaned as she shaded her eyes.

"_Why_ does it _have_ to be so _hot_ here _all the time_?" she asked, already feeling warmer then she wanted to be.

"Because we're in the _desert_. And it's not _that_ hot," Kankuro stated, obviously amused by her suffering.

"You're a sand shinobi! You're used to the desert!"

"Get used to it then."

"Cheater!" Sakura taunted, sticking her tongue out.

Kankuro pointed to his clothes. "I'm wearing all black! Doesn't that give me some credit?!"


	4. Vibrations and Deer Slobber

**Chapter Four**

Sakura was panting heavily by the time the tree line came into view. She sighed in relief, happy to _finally_ be out of the beating sunlight. Soon, at least. Kankuro paused and his fingers reached out to grab a kunai. Sakura raised a quizzical eyebrow at him.

"What's wrong?" she mumbled.

"Shut up," he snapped, his grip tightening on the kunai.

Sakura looked around in puzzlement. She could sense no chakra signatures or anyone at all except Kankuro and herself. The ground suddenly shifted under her feet and she fell over sideways with a yelp. She watched in disbelief as a huge scorpion unburied itself from the desert sands. Sakura's eyes widened as it turned and charged towards her like lightning. It stopped, making a loud screeching noise. The pink kunochi watched in wonder as the thing turned and charged Kankuro, its back bloody.

"What is that thing?!" Sakura asked, trying to stand up. The sand slipped out from under her feet and she fell back on her butt.

"Exactly what it looks like," Kankuro answered, pulling out another kunai.

The huge scorpion hissed, charging the puppeteer at full speed. It rammed into him. Sakura flinched but wasn't surprised when a blade shot out of "Kankuro's" arm, stabbing the thing in the head. The puppeteer appeared behind Sakura and helped her up.

"Wow…" Sakura stated flatly.

"Klutz…" Kankuro said, and again she thought she caught a hint of concern in what otherwise would be an insult. Again, though, she dismissed it.

"…How did you know it was coming?" the leaf ninja queried, staring at the large creature.

"Vibrations in the sand. It's something you notice after living here for a while."

"Oh…"

"You need to be more careful or you'll end up like him," the sand shinobi pointed out, gesturing towards the dead scorpion.

Sakura looked down at her feet. "Sorry…I'll try harder…"

"Whatever…just stay on your feet."

* * *

It was dark. Cold. Sakura shivered from the slight breeze, watching the forest's edge warily. Kankuro was leaning against a tree, his face lowered so that she couldn't see it. They had set up camp an hour ago. And did she mention it was _dark_?

A twig snapped, making both of their heads snap up instantly. A deer stepped out into the clearing. It had long graceful legs that looked slightly wobbly. Large innocent black eyes stared back at Sakura and its speckled coat gleamed in the shadows. It made its way over to a startled Kankuro and clamped its teeth down on his hat, yanking it off and munching on it. Sakura could barely stifle a laugh as Kankuro gave it a glare and snatched his hat back. The deer bit his hand, picking the hat off the ground after he dropped it and started chewing away. The sand ninja cursed and grabbed the hat back, sitting on it. The deer almost looked sullen as it pranced off. Sakura burst out laughing.

"What's so funny?" the angered puppeteer asked.

"T-The deer!" she managed to stutter between laughs. "Haha!"

Kankuro glared at his companion, somewhat annoyed that Sakura was laughing at him _and_ that his hat was covered in slobber. _Deer_ slobber of all things.


	5. Black Ant

**Chapter Five**

The two ninja silently stole through the underbrush. Both were exhausted from traveling for so long without any rest and being stuck in the forest for several days. Kankuro didn't want to admit it, but his eyelids were drooping and his reflexes were getting slower and slower. Sakura was finding it hard to not run into tree branches. Her feet kept on when she tried to land a jump. Kankuro even had to catch her once. Finally the pair stopped for a small break, both panting.

"…Thanks for…catching…me," Sakura said as she took a deep breath.

"No prob…"

"Are you okay? You've been really quite lately…"

"That's none of your business," Kankuro spat, looking away.

"…Kankuro?"

"Just shut up and keep your nose out."

Sakura went silent, though deep down she had a bad feeling. Somehow she felt that he was avoiding her. Did he think her weak? All she did was slip a few times and…almost get eaten by a giant scorpion. She looked down at her feet.

"I'm sorry…" she mumbled quietly.

"Did you say something?" he asked. Apparently he hadn't heard her and she didn't feel like repeating it.

"No…"

Another twig snapped, similar to when the deer had appeared earlier. Sakura instantly threw a kunai and a shrill screech pierced the air. Another large scorpion came hurtling towards her but instead of standing around being surprised she punched it square in the head, crushing it. Kankuro's face had a look of shock on it.

"You killed it…" he said blankly.

"Duh! I'm not useless!" Sakura stated angrily.

"Well, that's a relief."

"Hey! I'm the one who saved you're life from that poison!"

"And also the klutz."

"Why I oughta…"

"Calm down! I was just joking. Sheesh, you leaf ninja are so uptight…"

"If I wanted to bad enough you'd have a flat face fight now, _doll lover._"

He raised an eyebrow. "Doll lover? You're the one who has pink hair and wears bright red and pink clothing."

"Make-up wearer!"

"Ironing board."

"Scardy cat!!"

"Scared of the dark."

"I hate you!" Sakura exclaimed, throwing her arms in the air.

"I think we've already established that!" the sand ninja spat back.

"Why do you have to be so, so…so annoying!?"

"Maybe I was raised that way!"

"You're just a stupid oaf who can't get a girlfriend!"

"Ouch. Are you trying to hurt my feelings, _girlie_?"

"Don't call me girlie!"

"Girlie," he taunted, sticking out his tongue.

"I'm gonna kill you!"

"Go ahead and try!"

Sakura charged him, throwing a punch at his stomach. Her eyes went wide when her fist passed through air and a black void appeared instead. Before she could stop herself she was trapped inside the Black Ant, totally helpless. She started to fruitlessly punch the inside of the puppet, screaming vile words at the puppeteer. He just smirked, leaning back against a tree.

"Kankuro! When I get out you're dead!!!" she yelled.

* * *

Gaara had a blank look on his face, betraying no emotion as he was led down the long metal hall. The one thing that annoyed him the most was that they had dowsed him in water. He didn't like being soggy. The two men leading him just smirked, pulling him along roughly. After a few minutes they reached a thick metal door that opened after one of the guards swept a card through it. The pushed him inside and the door closed, leaving him to face the person sitting at the desk near the back of the room. He stepped forward swiftly.

"So, I finally get to meet the Kazekage; the great Gaara of the Desert. It's a pleasure to meet you," said an icy voice.

"You won't be able to keep me here forever. Someone will come." Gaara replied calmly.

"Hm. And who would that be, your siblings? They have their hands full I'm sure."

"What did you do to them?"

"Temari has to deal with some…trouble across borders but I'm not quite sure about Kankuro. The brat killed ten of my men a few days ago."

"…"

"And then there's the fact that Konoha has to deal with constant attacks and they are requesting assistance…"

"What are you planning?"

"Oh nothing much; not anything you need to know about anyway."

Gaara narrowed his eyes, wondering what on earth was going on.

* * *

"KANKURO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Sakura screamed.

"What!?"

"LET ME OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"No can do, _princess._ I'm busy so shut up!"

"DO YOU WANT ME TO BREAK THIS THING?!"

"Go ahead and try!"

The sounds of fists banging on wood echoed through the forest.

"Kankuro!"

"Will you _shut up_ if I let you out?"

"…Yes," she promised sullenly.

With a flick of his fingers Blank Ant opened up and Sakura tumbled out of the puppet with a small gasp. Unfortunately for both of them Kankuro happened to be seated in a relatively close position. This of course resulted in her falling on top of him in a rather awkward position, her being upside-down. She blushed. He blushed. Eventually he managed to push her off and scoot away, hiding his red face. She turned around and pretended to be mad by crossing her arms.

Silence. Kankuro went back to cleaning off his kunai knives. Sakura pouted, her face still slightly red as she fixed her gloves absently.

"Sorry…" the puppeteer mumbled.

She turned, not expecting an apology so soon. Heck, she hadn't even expected an apology at all.

"…No…problem," she replied, looking at the ground. "…I'm sorry, too."

Kankuro smiled and then continued what he was doing.


	6. More Alike Then They Thought

**Chapter Six**

Kankuro peered out from around the bushes at the enemy camp, narrowing his eyes to slits as he pinpointed the leader of the small group. It was a cocky looking man who was strutting about like a rooster amongst a bunch of hens. The other ninja, (mainly women, ironically) were sitting about with annoyed expressions on their faces. Their headbands had a single line on them.

Without warning Sakura charged out, her fist glowing with chakra and her eyes burning. She swung at the nearest ninja and sent her flying backwards into a tree where she slumped over. Crow flew out of the bushes, kunai shooting out of its arms and piercing several more enemies. The leader drew some kunai of his own and threw them at Sakura only to have them blocked by black ant. He growled, pulling out some more knives and tossing them randomly into the bushes, hoping to hit his target.

No luck.

Sakura finished off her last opponent with an uppercut and then charged towards the retreating leader. Crow beat her to it and stabbed the man in the back.

Panting, the pink kuinochi scanned the area to check for anymore threats. Once she deemed it safe she turned to the tree she knew Kankuro was behind.

"Nicely done, _partner,_" she commented with a grin.

"Hey, don't get any weird ideas. Once I find Gaara I'm heading back to my village and that's the end of this," Kankuro stated.

"Unless Gaara wants you to help me, that is," the leaf ninja said slyly.

The puppeteer glared.  
"Hm."

"What, you can't stand me that much?"

"_Obviously_."

"Well you should be pleased to know I feel the same way."

Kankuro mumbled something and then stepped out into the clearing. "Let's go."

* * *

Temari wiped sweat from her forehead as she rested on her large fan. Kunai whizzed past as well as a few shirikan. Fellow shinobi all around clashed with other ninja as battle cries rang out. Baki looked at the battle with a careful eye.

"We need Gaara," Baki said, not trying to cushion his comment.

"I know…Kankuro will find him. You just have to believe in him," reassured Temari as she waved her fan, sending a few would-be attackers flying.

"I want to, but with him out there all alone…it worries me."

"He'll be fine. After all, he's Kankuro. With his puppets those shinobi have to deal with _three_ of him. If I can only stand _one,_ then they'll by tailing it by now."

"I hope you're right Temari…"

* * *

"So where do you think they're keeping Gaara?" Sakura asked absently as she played with her hair.

"I'm guessing their base is somewhere near the mountains. They used earth based attacks mainly…"

"Reasonable guess. So…what happened to him?"

"They took a bunch of kids hostage and threatened to kill them if he didn't come peacefully."

"Those cowards..."

"You're telling me. The whole village was in turmoil and then they started attacking us…"

"So your village is in just as much danger as mine I guess…"

"Yeah…well you guys have someone as determined as Naruto. You'll be fine," Kankuro stated with a small smile.

Sakura looked up at the sky.

"Yeah…he won't go down without a fight; that's for certain."

Silence hung over them for a few moments until Sakura couldn't take it anymore.

"It sure is strange…"

"What is?"

"How you used to be my enemy."

He seemed to think for a moment, and then he grinned. "I don't think it's very weird."

"I mean…one day we were trying to kill each other and the next we're trying to save each others butts," Sakura commented.

"I think our village owes you a lot," the sand ninja admitted

"…Why?"

"Well, for one, without Naruto's…influence…I don't think Gaara would have become such a lovable guy. If it hadn't been for you guys he would have never been rescued. Not to mention how you helped save his student…I myself wouldn't be here without you."

"That doesn't mean you haven't done your share of saving us….remember how you helped us defeat those weirdos by the ocean? You know...the bat lady and whatever that other one was…You and your siblings saved the lives of Kiba, Shikamaru, and Rock Lee also."

Kankuro laughed. "It's not like it was hard. You guys had those sound freaks worn down pretty badly by the time we showed up."

"All that matters is you came. You're…a strong ally."

"You too."

Sakura smiled.

"Except…I've never really been the one out in front, if you know what I mean. It feels like I'm always in the shadow of Naruto or…Sasuke," she said quietly. "Everyone always said that Naruto was useless, but…I was really the only one who couldn't do anything…"

"Hey, you've gotten stronger though because of it, right? Try being related to Gaara and Temari. You always get looked down on as the weakest link."

"…Really?"

"Yeah…It's always "why aren't you as good a fighter as Temari?" or "why can't you be as good a leader as Gaara?" It used to really bother me that I seemed to be so weak."

"I guess you're right...If it weren't for them, I don't think I would have tried so hard," Sakura realized.

The sand ninja chuckled. "I guess we're alike in more ways then we thought."

"…I guess so."


	7. Useless

**Chapter Seven**

Sakura slept soundly with a tree against her back, a small frown on her face. Kankuro stared at her for a moment. She must have been really worried about her village…

The sand shinobi traced patterns in the dirt with a stick as he thought about their next possible moves. Usually he was with a group that had a totally different set of skills. In annoyance he started to plan, though he paused again to look at Sakura. What exactly could she do, anyway? He'd never asked.

Absently he sighed. What if Gaara was in danger? He'd never forgive himself if his little brother was somehow injured…And why did everyone have to go and kidnap him?

Kankuro could still easily remember the time when everyone tried to kill Gaara. They hated him. Feared him. Maybe if he'd been a better brother, it would have all gotten better sooner.

With a low growl he threw the stick. This always happened when he got bored! Wondering if he could have _somehow_ fixed everything. If maybe he was really a terrible person. That he deserved what his father did to him.

He shivered.

No. No one deserved that.

Sakura stirred, blinking one eye open lazily. Slowly she sat up.

"Is it morning?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah," Kankuro tried to reply politely but there was an edge to his voice.

"…Is something wrong…?"

"No. Come on, we should get moving."

Sakura watched him as he stood up quickly and stalked off into the bushes.

"…O…kay…" she mumbled, a bit confused. Had she done something wrong? Maybe he just wasn't an early bird…or cat…She giggled at the thought.

It didn't take her long to get ready and soon she was following him again. She couldn't help but wonder what had made him so upset. Gaara _had_ been kidnapped, but still…it wasn't any reason to act like she wasn't there. She stared at his back as he jumped from tree branch to tree branch.

Sakura suddenly came to a jolting stop, throwing herself backwards as kunai flew through the air where her head had just been. She grabbed onto the sturdy branch and swung down onto the ground. The pink haired ninja rolled into the cover of the bushes to avoid another barrage of kunai, peering out from the leaves in search of the attacker. _'Kankuro, you better be alright…'_ she thought as she scanned the area.

The puppeteer in question had ducked behind a tree, crouched down with a kunai at the ready. He slowly pulled free one of his summoning scrolls.

"You two hide like cowards…typical for sand ninja…but I thought leaf ninja were more courageous?" taunted a female voice. Sakura couldn't tell where it was coming from. "But either way…it doesn't matter."

Kankuro summoned Crow silently, narrowing his eyes. The kunai thrown earlier had come from multiple directions…were there more ninja then the presently speaking one? He disguised his puppet as himself and waited.

Sakura pulled out her own kunai, focusing chakra into one fist as she took a deep breath. She didn't know how many enemy ninja there were. A bead of sweat slipped down her forehead and she wiped it away quietly. Her eyes widened when Sasuke appeared in front of her.

"S-Sasuke?!" she exclaimed quietly.

"What are you even doing?" he asked with disgust in his voice.

"…What do you mean?"

"It's obvious. They only sent you away from the village because you're a nuisance. Useless."

"No…you're wrong…" she shook her head. "This isn't real! It's Genjutsu!" she stated, closing her eyes and putting her hands over her ears.

"No one likes you. They just want you to go off somewhere and die. Poor Kankuro, having to put up with someone like you…" he continued, red eyes gleaming.

_'Why won't it go away?! Make it stop!'_ Sakura mentally screamed.

"He's probably just waiting for a chance to get rid of you like the leaf village did."

"No! You're wrong! Get out of my head!"

"Sakura…why are you so useless?" a voice that sounded like Naruto asked.

"Stop!"

"You can't do anything. You couldn't even stop Sasuke when he wanted to leave the village. It's all you're fault that he's gone," Naruto continued.

Sakura didn't want to look. It had to be an illusion…it wasn't reality. If that was true though, why couldn't she dispel it? Why wouldn't it go away?

And the worst part…

They were right.

"Stop!"

Kankuro started at the loud scream, almost losing his balance on the small tree branch he was precariously perched on. He cursed under his breath. They'd gotten to Sakura somehow…without her even trying to fight back. Genjutsu? He groaned quietly, peering around the tree trunk. Of all the things…why did it have to be his worst area of skills? Heck, he couldn't eve remember how to dispel a Genjutsu on another person.

"Looking for me?"

He instantly threw the kunai in his hand at the long haired woman. She dodged to the side and drew a long, thin blade from its sheath on her back, slicing at his neck. She didn't seem surprised when her sword met wood and Crow used its own blades to try and slice her open.

Kankuro dropped down to the ground, glancing up at the enemy ninja. He skillfully maneuvered his puppet to fend her off while he hid in the undergrowth. She'd managed to sneak up on him without him even noticing…

"To slow!" she cackled, pointing her blade down and jumping into the bushes. Kankuro rolled to the side and narrowly avoiding being stabbed in the back.

"Hmm…" she seemed to look him over as he jumped away. "Not bad…you don't even seem to be worried about your companion," she jeered, throwing three senbon after him.

The puppeteer easily deflected them with a kunai.

"Maybe you really do want to get rid of her…she is useless, isn't she?" the woman continued.

_'You're wrong…_' Kankuro thought, landing on another branch.

He swung forward when she appeared behind him, forcing him off the branch and back onto the ground. The sand ninja's attention was caught again when he heard Sakura scream.

"You should pay more attention."

He fought back a shocked yelp of pain as he skidded backwards, feeling the blood drip down his cheek from the cut he had received. The only thing that had saved him was his uneven footing…if he hadn't tripped…

Kankuro flipped backwards and brought Crow in front of him to block a stab from the enemy woman. She pushed the puppet aside and sprung towards him with a malicious grin. The puppeteer gave her a smile of his own as Crow came up behind her, stabbing her between the shoulder blades.

She gave a small gasp and then fell to the ground. Kankuro moved Crow out of the way just before the woman hit the ground.

"Sakura!" he called, hoping she would respond.

The pink haired girl didn't answer.

He quickly searched the area, catching a glimpse of red deep in the bushes.

"Hey! Sakura!"

The puppeteer pushed his way through the leaves, crouching down next to her huddled form. She was shaking.

"…Sakura?" he asked quietly.

"I'm nothing…useless…" she replied brokenly. Emptily.

Kankuro wasn't sure what to do. Slowly he wrapped his arms around her smaller body, calling her name.

She had to snap out of it.

Sakura knew tears were running down her face, but somehow she couldn't feel it. She couldn't feel anything.

After all, no one needed her. They hated her. Despised her. She was…useless. A burden on the ones she wanted to help. A nuisance.

"Sakura!"

She opened her eyes slowly, wondering who would call her name. Someone was holding her. Her heart started to race as she tried to pull out of her unaware state.

But…why would someone call out to her? She was useless…

"Sakura…wake up."

Was there someone who needed her…? She felt the arms of the person tighten around her.

"Wake up."

And she did.

"…Kankuro?" she murmured, blinked at the bright sunlight.

He quickly let go of her and she fell back against a tree painfully with a yelp. "What the heck?!"

The puppeteer hid his face by turning away. "Sheesh, I thought you were dead or something…" he muttered.

"Were you…_holding_ me?" Sakura asked, a blush creeping onto her face.

"No! I was trying to wake you up!" he defended.

"How is that going to help?!"

"I-" he stopped, his vision blurring.

"…Kankuro?"

"Crap," he said, falling over onto the ground.

"Hey! What's wrong?"

Sakura crawled unsteadily over to his side, shaking his shoulder. "Kankuro! Darn it!" she smashed the ground with her fist, shaking him again.

The leaf ninja rolled him over so she could see his face, noticing the deep but on his face.

"Poison…?"

She felt his forehead, wincing at how hot it was. He'd fought off that ninja by himself while she was caught in that Genjutsu…

"Argh! How could I be so stupid?!" she asked the trees around her, tears forming in her eyes. She quickly wiped them away, determination on her face. "I saved him from poison before…I can do it again."

* * *

**My gosh, it took me forever to write a new chapter for this O_o Sorry about that. To make up for it this chapter is longer then most of the others.**

**I also rewrote all of the chapters so you might want to go back and reread them. I can't remember if I added anything new but I'm pretty sure I did.**

**Thanks goes out to MissMet9641, nmshy, Fairy of Anime, jayanx, and Shubaltz Crazist for reviewing :)**

-Silverfire113


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